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Tricks or hacks are cunning ways to outwit someone or something and are most commonly applied, but not limited to, practical and online games, but there are clever life hacks too like heating two bowls of dishes in one microwave or using binder clips to fix broken keyboard stands. Clever, indeed!

In business, in companies particularly, tricks or hacks or conventionally referred to as strategies, are skillfully learnt and applied to business processes in carrying out plans to achieve goals like profitability, customer service, retention, efficiency, growth and at utmost goal, Customer Acquisition whichmainly starts with a lead generation program. Both quality and quantity of leads are dependent on the how (processes) and where (sources) the leads were generated. Thus, driving IT companies to discover and craft more lead generation hacks that would help the business grow. Take a look at some of them fromJeffbullas:

#1: Make use of the email signature space

A come on message about a latest post with a link to your blog is a sure bet to gain attention. Just make sure that your content includes an option for the recipient to receive future posts. Level up on your CTAs by including links that would lead to landing pages of Q&As, subscription or appointment requests.

#2: Bylines that sell

Share buttons will surely keep your post active but the action mustn’t stop there. Create a convincing byline that will move the reader to opt-in for future posts. Thus, you earn another active email address while increasing the chances of generating leads. Here’s a fine example of a Call-to-action we place at one of our blog post.

#3: White spaces on your rails look neat

Set sticky widgets that roll with the content as the reader scrolls down for more information. This will serve as a constant reminder to them to click a landing page for an offer or a free guide. On either side, attach a photo that clearly represents you or your business. Oracle nailed it.

#4: Post product videos on landing pages

It’s true that most internet users today are what we call visual learners – they understand a story, product’s use or a service’s process better when presented through a video. A 2-minute video of a walkthrough on how to play Pokemon Go would perk up your viewer to play the game right away.

By having a video placed on your landing pages, you’ll be giving the visitor an option for a quick scan of your service. Not all will be delighted to read a four-paragraph landing page but a well-crafted and cogent marketing video might do the work for you.

Additional hacks:

Locate online groups of your target customers and engage with them for maybe 1-15 minutes a day and start posting witty questions or fyi’s, once or twice a day and eventually drive them to landing pages with CTAs like offers and subscription. See more of this lead generation hack from Noah Kagan ofokdork.com

Never use the word SPAM if you want to increase conversion rates. For whatever reason, the word just has something that readers do not like. Learn more about this from Mike Aagard, author forContentVerve.com on A/B testing conversion forms

Access Quora and search for topic keywords to get into relatable feeds.

Join the 60 million users of Slideshare and gain potential leads from visitors who find your slide presentation interesting and usable.

Tricks or hacks are cunning ways to outwit someone or something and are most commonly applied, but not limited to, practical and online games, but there are clever life hacks too like heating two bowls of dishes in one microwave or using binder clips to fix broken keyboard stands. Clever, indeed!

In business, in companies particularly, tricks or hacks or conventionally referred to as strategies, are skillfully learnt and applied to business processes in carrying out plans to achieve goals like profitability, customer service, retention, efficiency, growth and at utmost goal, Customer Acquisition whichmainly starts with a lead generation program. Both quality and quantity of leads are dependent on the how (processes) and where (sources) the leads were generated. Thus, driving IT companies to discover and craft more lead generation hacks that would help the business grow. Take a look at some of them fromJeffbullas:

#1: Make use of the email signature space

A come on message about a latest post with a link to your blog is a sure bet to gain attention. Just make sure that your content includes an option for the recipient to receive future posts. Level up on your CTAs by including links that would lead to landing pages of Q&As, subscription or appointment requests.

#2: Bylines that sell

Share buttons will surely keep your post active but the action mustn’t stop there. Create a convincing byline that will move the reader to opt-in for future posts. Thus, you earn another active email address while increasing the chances of generating leads. Here’s a fine example of a Call-to-action we place at one of our blog post.

#3: White spaces on your rails look neat

Set sticky widgets that roll with the content as the reader scrolls down for more information. This will serve as a constant reminder to them to click a landing page for an offer or a free guide. On either side, attach a photo that clearly represents you or your business. Oracle nailed it.

#4: Post product videos on landing pages

It’s true that most internet users today are what we call visual learners – they understand a story, product’s use or a service’s process better when presented through a video. A 2-minute video of a walkthrough on how to play Pokemon Go would perk up your viewer to play the game right away.

By having a video placed on your landing pages, you’ll be giving the visitor an option for a quick scan of your service. Not all will be delighted to read a four-paragraph landing page but a well-crafted and cogent marketing video might do the work for you.

Additional hacks:

Locate online groups of your target customers and engage with them for maybe 1-15 minutes a day and start posting witty questions or fyi’s, once or twice a day and eventually drive them to landing pages with CTAs like offers and subscription. See more of this lead generation hack from Noah Kagan ofokdork.com

Never use the word SPAM if you want to increase conversion rates. For whatever reason, the word just has something that readers do not like. Learn more about this from Mike Aagard, author forContentVerve.com on A/B testing conversion forms

Access Quora and search for topic keywords to get into relatable feeds.

Join the 60 million users of Slideshare and gain potential leads from visitors who find your slide presentation interesting and usable.

Don’t be too pessimistic. Small and medium enterprises can gain leverage in their respective industries despite the existence of large corporations. The only problem is that some of these enterprises lack a thorough understanding of the importance of B2B lead generation processes.

Resources are not much of a factor here. Considering that social media has made possible the free movement of information, creation of compelling content and unique ideas for customer engagement matters the most.

Then again, SMEs are at a loss on how best to approach lead generation and come up with strategies that pose a high ROI. Using social media is less easy and simple than most marketers think. It makes use of processes, considers analytics that put into account past and present market trends, and emphasizes the need to make the most out of one’s financial inputs.

This only drives home the fact that lead management is a complex, highly specialized task. On top of these complexities, one is also hard pressed to find better solutions with regards to generating high quality B2B leads, complicating the desire to hike up revenue generation.

It’s a tough thing for SMEs to encounter these problems, but again there’s no need to be pessimistic here as long as these lead generation boosters exist.

Expert insights through videos.

Information is central to customer awareness. In their search for solutions to certain problems, your prospects base their decisions on the way you present your offers. For startup businesses, webinars and video-based campaigns are excellent lead generation devices. They enable you to engage your customers indirectly and allow you to present your take of the industry through the visual medium.

EBooks.

Digital books are also great marketing tools that your prospects can use as reference material. And because information is he underlying principle behind an effective B2B lead generation tactic, it is imperative that you produce your eBooks with a desire to impart knowledge in the form of tutorials and case studies. They are also advantageous in terms of effective lead nurturing.

Crowdsource.

Often, the best ideas come from the very people to whom you focus your marketing efforts. Many successful campaigns were possible through the use of crowdsourcing techniques that can provide your campaign with value. Especially through Twitter, effective calls to action that encourages your audience to contribute might just improve your lead generation as well as lead nurturing campaign.

It’s a big world out there. But for SMEs possessing a good balance of creativity and ingenuity in terms of generating and managing B2B leads, big benefits are possible.

Lead generation is, simply put, a way for you to attract interested prospects to your business. You market your business in almost all avenues, trying to cover as much ground as possible. This may look too much for you, but it is necessary if you want to generate more sales leads. With the sources being varied as it is, it will not hurt your marketing efforts if you try to use as many communication tools as you can. One of the most effective tools, seemingly, is still telemarketing.

Have a strong foundation – before you ever get your foot into appointment setting territory, you need to prepare your market first. Research the segment you wish to enter. Know who are the main players and those who do business in that particular segment. Get their contact details. You can conduct phone surveys to do that, just be sure that you have carefully crafted your questionnaire.

Become an authority– this one requires you to announce your expertise to the market. Remember that this expertise has to be the one that you are trying to sell. Work on building the trust of people you wish to do business with.

Be everywhere– be it in trade fairs, forums, symposiums, try to create presence in the market. By announcing yourself to be available to accept clients, you can attract the interest of potential B2B leads. They will come to you on their own.

Selling can be a pain, especially for people not used to this kind of work. Well, even veterans still find this profession a challenge. With the way markets move and trends change, adapting constantly can be a daunting chore. Even so, there are plenty of strategies that you can use to consistently stay at the top of the lead generation business. Generating sufficient sales leadsis not that hard at all, as long as you keep in mind the following three tips:

Set you bar too high – yes, this is unrealistic, but if you constantly push yourself to reach impossible goals, especially ones that exceed the average of your appointment setting colleagues, then you will find yourself improving way better.

Keep yourself motivated – basically speaking, have an end in sight. Once you have reached that end, try creating another goal. Maintaining a proper motivation will help you reach your B2B leads goals much better.

Believe in yourself – this can be a real game-changer. How can you make people believe in what you are offering if you do not believe in it yourself? Before you go marketing your product to prospective sales leads, you should market to yourself first.

Another thing you should remember would probably be the content. Regardless of whatever marketing tool you use, be it social media or telemarketing, you need to stay consistent in your message. This would be the first thing your prospects would be looking for. As for the other three, well, now you know them, it would be easier to do it.

Starting your own business can be the most exciting chapter of your life. Finally, you can be your own boss, managing people under you, and exploring lead generation possibilities that can help improve your bottom line. It all seems rosy, right? But once you put things into practice, well, you might discover some things that can give you problems. Make a mistake, and all your efforts can unravel. That can affect your ability to generate sales leads. So what kind of errors can you commit in your B2B leads efforts?

For easy reference, we could classify them according to the seven cardinal sins, since these can reflect the kind of negative actions you might make:

Greed – maximizing profits is good, but too much of a good thing is bad. Never take on business leads that may give you profits now, but can prove to be a headache to your business later on. Greed compels marketers to chase short-term rewards, without regards to what the future has in store.

Gluttony – trying to collect all the sales leads that you want may result to a glut in your pipeline, slowing performance down, as well as failing to deliver promised services to your clients. Remember, there is a limit to how many accounts you can handle. Too many, and you will not be able to serve all.

Lust – being the business owner presents a lot of temptations, like buying a few luxuries here and there. While rewarding yourself is fine, spending on extras can reduce the available funds that might be needed for your appointment setting campaign. This is very risky for business.

Sloth – just because you are the business owner does not mean you can just sit back and relax. Truth to be told, this position is exactly where the most work is required. Besides, you have to take the lead for your employees to follow, right? You have to push yourself, even if it means joining your telemarketing team so as to reach your quota.

Pride – ego is not that bad, especially if you want to create a strong image for your business. But if you let all go out of hand, you will fail to see the truth. Sometimes, you just have to swallow the bitter pill and admit that maybe, your current business set-up is not the best.

Wrath – showing passion for your business is great, but it must not devolve into an emotional train wreck. People who get carried away by their passion tend to think irrationally, often going into destructive actions that, ultimately, destroy their business.

Envy – comparing your business to others can be useful in setting benchmarks to reach, but if it begins to get into your nerves, then you are probably doing it the wrong way. People who let envy get the better of them often use their time and resources to sabotage their competition, neglecting their own potentials to grow and prosper.

Handling a small scale business can be a challenge for entrepreneurs like you. It will not be surprising if you juggle between manager, accountant, promoter, travel agent, and auditor all at the same time. It does make you wonder if you still need to add strategist for lead generation. But that is the one thing you should never do without. Companies that lack a strategic approach in management weaken their ability to generate B2B leads. This, in turn, makes it harder for them to find additional sales leads that could keep their business afloat. So, how does one think strategically?

Do not assume that the current thinking is correct – there is such a thing as market evolution. Yes, your appointment setting process may work, but it may not be effective today. You might have to reexamine your current strategy.

Be ready to explore – even if you reach a dead end, you must be ready to explore all avenues in business. If it means adopting a different communication medium (like telemarketing) or tap a different market, you should do so.

Have a little confidence – strategic thinking requires that you look into the unknown. You will not reach anything if your insecurity prevents you from taking the first step.

You are always faced with choices – you always have to make a choice in actions. Strategic thinking is never a straight path. You have to constantly make the right decisions.

Having problems with your competitors in Singapore? Worry not, since that is just part of everyday life in business. Lead generation is not a smooth sailing activity. You will get tossed around by the fickle tastes of the market, not to mention getting rammed by other players in the field. Still, if you know the basics of effectively getting qualified B2B leads, then you will succeed in the long run. With a little creativity, ingenuity, as well as intuition, you can beat the others in generating sales leads. You just need to:

Focus on your strengths – this is your defensive point when convincing prospects that you are a much better deal than your competitors. If others sell cheaper goods, you offer more quality ones.

Stay small – this is one good way to control your costs, as well as minimize wastage of resources. This forces you to concentrate on the essentials, maximizing your value.

Look for large clients – yes, getting such a deal is near impossible for start-ups or untested providers, but if your telemarketing team can show these prospects that you can deliver what they need, then it would mean a more profitable deal for you.

Know your limits – you cannot take all the deals you want. At some point, you will be overwhelmed with orders. You need to know where to stop taking deals, as well as figure out if the profits from the deal will cover your initial cost.

These are the four most important points you need to follow to be more competitive generating sales leads in Singapore.

Marketing trends and tactics change every year in Singapore, and your company should be ready for it. How you do that will determine whether you get to generate enough qualified sales leads or not. But that is up to you and what you need to achieve. Each marketing goal requires a different strategy to reach it. Aside from choosing a specific lead generation tactic, you also need to know improve the way you present yourself to business prospects. Only then will you be able to realize a better chance of attracting more B2B leads. So, what should you be improving this year?

Think in strategic terms – in all the lead generation tactics you employ, you need to make sure that everything is consistent with the message you bring. When sending emails to prospects, do you include your company name? When conducting telemarketing campaigns, do your people provide a level of service consistent to what you are advertising? When talking to potential sales leads, do you adjust your pitch according to what they need? These are just some questions you need to answer.

Think more content – yes, content is still the king! People and businesses still give a premium for websites that remain consistent in the quality of content that they add. The better and fresher the content, the better your chances of turning prospects into real sales leads. You have to invest well in this part of your marketing process.

Think of giving – we are often too focused on a give and take relationship that we forget the value of simply giving. Either new business information or tips about the market, giving something without anything in return is a good way to improve market impression (ultimately making your appointment setting campaign easier to do).

Think of better rapport – nothing beats the advantages that good customer rapport brings to your business. Sending out personalizes emails, acknowledging customer messages, interacting some more in social circles like Twitter and Facebook, etc. can bring you into a deeper relationship with customers. It might not bring the B2B leads you want, but at least it makes the job easier.

Think about more promotions – advertising your business is also an important part of your appointment setting campaign. You need to improve your presence in the internet, in the community, as well as in industries that may be in need of you services. To start with, how will business prospects trust you if they have not heard of your company at the beginning? You will need an effective marketing strategy to do it right.

There are other things that you ought to change or do better for this year, but these five would be a good start. Conducting a lead generation campaign in Singapore is not that hard, contrary to popular belief. You just need to be ready to adjust and meet the demands of the changing market. Once you do that, it will be an easier thing to generate the sales leads that your business will need.­

About Us

Founded in 2004, Callbox has evolved into a specialist provider of Multi-Touch Multi-Channel Marketing solutions for businesses and organizations worldwide. Its core competencies include Lead Generation, Appointment Setting, Lead Nurturing and Database Services, delivered through its proprietary marketing automation platform, the Callbox Pipeline.

Callbox enables companies gain a foothold in their priority markets by initiating conversations with decision makers through the efficient and intelligent use of targeted touchpoints over six channels: voice, email, social, chat, website and mobile.